Day in Rock Report for 02/22/2018

Today's Day in Rock Stories

(hennemusic) The Stone Temple Pilots are streaming a new single, "The Art Of Letting Go", from their forthcoming self-titled album ahead of its release on March 16.

The jazzy-tinged ballad follows the lead single, "Meadow", and follow-up, "Roll Me Under", as the third song previewed from the band's first studio record with new lead singer Jeff Gutt.

The Michigan rocker made his live debut with the group during an exclusive November 14 show at The Troubadour in West Hollywood, CA. In addition to previously-announced dates in March and festival dates this spring, Stone Temple Pilots recently added a series of new concert dates in May.

"With so much time and experience gone by in life, we feel compelled to dig back into a 30-year catalog and really try to reflect and choose what songs haven't been performed live," says bassist Robert DeLeo of the band's return to live action. "We want to give people who have come to see us in the past a chance to hear something they haven't heard before at previous STP shows. We want to celebrate this time in our lives with our performances." Listen to the song

(hennemusic) Judas Priest are streaming a snippet of the brand new track "Traitors Gate" which comes from their forthcoming album, "Firepower", ahead of its release on March 9.

The veteran UK metal band's eighteenth studio album was recorded last year with producers Andy Sneap and Tom Allom. Sneap will join Judas Priest on guitar alongside Richie Faulkner for their Firepower world tour - which begins in Wilkes Barre, PA on March 13 - following news that longtime axeman Glenn Tipton has retired from touring after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

"Ten years ago, Glenn was diagnosed to have the onset of the early stages of Parkinson's," says the group about the degenerative disorder of the central nervous system, "from then until recently Glenn has lived his life as the great heavy metal guitar player he has always been, maintaining by his own definition a standard of quality and performance that is incredibly important.

"Right now, Glenn is able to play and perform some of the Priest songs that are less challenging but, due to the nature of Parkinson's progression, he wants to let you all know that he won't be touring as such.

"True to the metal spirit of 'the show must go on'," they add, "Glenn has requested Andy Sneap to fly the flag on stage for him."

Formed in Birmingham, UK in 1969, Tipton joined Judas Priest in time for the recording of their 1974 debut album, "Rocka Rolla"; his twin-lead guitar work with K.K. Downing provided a signature sound for the group through the years.

"I want everyone to know that it's vital that the Judas Priest tour go ahead and that I am not leaving the band - it's simply that my role has changed," explains Tipton. "I don't rule out the chance to go on stage as and when I feel able to blast out some Priest! So at some point in the not too distant future I'm really looking forward to seeing all of our wonderful metal maniacs once again"

"We have been privileged to witness Glenn's determination and steadfast commitment over the years," says Tipton's bandmates, "showing his passion and self belief through the writing, recording and performing sessions with Priest - he is a true metal hero!"We are not surprised by Glenn's insistence that we complete the Firepower tour and thank Andy for joining us to make Glenn's wishes become real - as Glenn has said we also can't wait to have him with us at any time any place on the road..... We love you Glenn!" Check out the song preview

(Gibson) Two surviving members of The Monkees are teaming up for a run, as Mike Nesmith and Micky Dolenz have announced their first-ever trek as a duo. The string of concerts, dubbed "The Monkees Present: The Mike and Micky Show," will run throughout June. Find the full list of shows below.

"I love being on stage with Micky," Nesmith said in a statement. "We've been collaborating for over 50 years, so it's hard to believe it's never been just the two of us. I'm excited to dust off some tunes that I haven't played for a long time too. These are going to be some fun shows."

"Right from the get-go, I admired Mike's songs. When we used to get together around the campfire to sing in the early days, we were always doing his songs," Dolenz added. "We always had such a great a vocal blend; he was the one who encouraged me to write songs of my own. I've always been a big fan and now we finally get to do the Mike & Micky show that we riffed on back when we were shooting The Monkees."

The band's other surviving member, Peter Tork, will not appear on this tour. According to a release, he's staying busy with work on Relax Your Mind, a new album by Tork and Shoe Suede Blues that pays tribute to the music of Lead Belly. The album is out now via CD Baby and Bandcamp. Read more including the dates

(Gibson) Here's a tour jam-packed with women who rock. Halestorm, In This Moment, Stitched Up Heart and New Years Day have announced a North American trek, set to kick off April 27 and keep them on the road through mid-May.

"We've been wanting to put together a tour like this for a long time," Halestorm frontwoman Lzzy Hale said in a statement. "We are a few of the hardest working women in rock, so the fact that we are all on the same stage every night is something not to be missed! We support and love each other, and we are representing our genre. This lineup is a beautiful display of what it means to be a strong female example for rock fans everywhere."

Maria Brink of In This Moment added, "I am very excited about being a part of such an empowering, divine, female-fronted tour. It is very rare in rock music to have a movement like this and the timing couldn't be more perfect. Lzzy and I are already discussing the possibility of more tours like this in the future. Let the Amazons rise!"

The tour also includes some stops at music festivals, including Jacksonville, Florida's Rockville 2018 (April 27); Fort Lauderdale, Florida's Fort Rock (April 28); and Charlotte, North Carolina's Carolina Rebellion (May 5). See the dates

(Gibson) The Rolling Stones Exhibit, also known as Exhibitionism, has one final stop. The exhibit, which is currently in Las Vegas, will make its way to the Music City this spring. The display will officially close its doors at the Palazzo resort in Las Vegas on Sunday, February 25, and open at the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville on March 29. Tickets for the Nashville display can be purchased online now at StonesExhibit.com.

The Nashville stop has been confirmed to be the display's final stop on its U.S. tour. Previous locations included New York City and Chicago. Before it hit the U.S., Exhibitionism debuted at London's Saatchi Gallery in April of 2016.

"We're all in for a rare treat," Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum CEO and founder Joe Chambers said in an official statement. "Hosting The Rolling Stones Exhibit…and pairing it with our museum that celebrates the achievements of all musicians around the globe establishes a can't-miss destination worth traveling from anywhere for music fans."

The exhibit was created with the help of the Rolling Stones and features a collection of themed spots displaying more than 500 Stones artifacts, such as guitars, posters, costumes, photos and more. Read more

Acclaimed rock guitarist Ethan Brosh just released his new album "Conspiracy" and to celebrate we asked him to tell us about the story behind the song "Tomb Of The Gods". Here is the story:

This week I'm very happy to share a song I've been working on for a long time. This tune also now has a brand new music video that looks like it was shot on Mars. It might as well have!

It is by far the best music video I had done to date, It'll be a tough one to outdo for sure! The tune Tomb Of The Gods is a very straight forward Hard Rock Instrumental melodic tune with a middle eastern twist to it.This tune came to me as I was teaching and explaining the Phrygian mode to a student and demonstrating it. As it turns out the Phrygian mode was considered to be a warlike mode in ancient Greek music, so I thought the name was appropriate as well.

Sometimes while explaining a concept on the guitar and demonstrating it to another human being can inspire one to write something right on the spot, that was definitely the case here. I can tell you I'm very happy I gave that one particular guitar lesson as it gave birth to a song I will be playing for the rest of my life, It gave birth to what is now my absolute best music video and it gave birth to a piece of music that did not exist before but because of that one lesson it will now see the light of day for many many years to come.

Another thing that immediately comes to mind when I think about Tomb Of The Gods is the incredible guest guitar solo by none other than Satchel of Steel Panther! This is an exclusive on the album version of this tune. The experience of collaborating with Satchel was a very exciting and pleasant experience. I am forever grateful to him for taking part in this and I am absolutely loving the result, as I'm sure anyone who will be hearing it on the album. Hearing his guitar playing in a slightly different context than Steel Panther is already real interesting in and of its own to say the least! Satchel is one of the very top guitar players we have in this day and age, His style is very melodic, tasteful, elegant and delivered with great time feel and flawless technique. I think Tomb Of The Gods already has many special things associated with it even before the record is released! I can't wait to see how the world reacts to it once it's been out there for a while!

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album

(Radio.com) Imagine Dragons are back. Dan Reynolds and company have shared a brand new song, "Next to Me." The track is a big and powerful ballad that highlights Reynolds soaring and impassioned vocals.

"Next to Me" arrives with a slew of new U.S. tour dates that kick off June 5 in Hartford, CT. The new dates run through August 10, when the band touches down in Tampa, FL. Singer/Songwriter Grace VanderWaal will join the guys as the support act. See the full tour itinerary below.

Tickets are on sale to the general public starting Saturday, March 3 at 10am local time via Live Nation. Fans can register starting now, Wednesday, February 21 at 12pm ET through Sunday, February 25 at 3pm ET for free access to the Ticketmaster Verified Fan presale, which will allow vetted fans to purchase tickets before the general public starting Tuesday, February 27th at 10am local time through Friday, March 2nd at 10pm local time. See the dates and listen to the new song

(hennemusic) Metallica are streaming footage of their cover of the Irish traditional song, "Whiskey In The Jar", from a February 14 concert at the Unipol Arena in Bologna, Italy.

The band first recorded the tune for their 1998 compilation album, "Garage Inc.", with their studio version going on to win a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance in 2000.

"Garage Inc." featured Metallica covers of tracks by several acts, including Black Sabbath, Bob Seger and Misfits, as well as the group's 1987 collection, "The $5.98 EP - Garage Days Re-Revisited", which will be reissued on its own on April 13.

Out-of-print and available for the first time in decades, the 5-track set sees the band deliver covers of some of their influences, including Budgie, Killing Joke and Diamond Head. Read more

(Gibson) It's always special when your favorite band does something special for just a few of its most ardent fans. Shoegaze pioneers My Bloody Valentine did just that for fans and even made it a surprise.

Late last year, My Bloody Valentine bandleader Kevin Shields announced "all analogue" vinyl reissues of their two classic albums Isn't Anything (1988) and Loveless (1991). As it turns out, the band secretly included a special "alternative cut" of Isn't Anything with the initial shipments of the albums.

In a post on Twitter, the band wrote, "Just wanted to let you know that we have now run out of the free extra isn't anything alternative cut and pressing that we are giving away. Thanks to everybody who bought the initial run!" Read more

(hennemusic) The Who will mark the 50th anniversary of a pair of legendary New York concerts with the April 20 release of "Live At The Fillmore East 1968" on 2CD, 3LP and digital formats.

The project captures the UK band live during an April 6, 1968 set at the newly-opened Manhattan venue in the days that followed the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Memphis, TN.

As the first British rock act to headline the club, The Who were originally scheduled to play four shows over a two-night run; however, because of feared social unrest in the wake of Dr King's assassination, it was decided to compact the shows into one per night.

Due to faulty equipment or human error, only part of The Who's April 5 performance was recorded, but the second night was fully captured and has now been restored and mixed by long time Who sound engineer Bob Pridden from the original four-track tapes.

"Live At The Fillmore East 1968" presents classic tracks by the band alongside three Eddie Cochran classics: "My Way," "Summertime Blues", and the never before released Who version of "C'mon Everybody."

Also featured is a rare cover version of "Fortune Teller" written by Allen Toussaint, originally recorded by Benny Spellman but made famous by The Rolling Stones.

An epic, 30-plus-minute version of "My Generation" fills out the entire second disc as the show ends with a climax of guitar-smashing and drum-trashing. Read more

(Radio.com) Portugal. The Man recorded one of 2017's catchiest songs, "Feel It Still," and now they're promoting their latest single "Live In The Moment." Last night (Feb. 20), they stopped by The Late Show set to perform the song, accompanied by the BK Steppers and the P.S. 22 Chorus.

Fresh off their GRAMMY win for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, Portugal. The Man delivered a spirited version of "Live In The Moment" with their special guests.

The BK Steppers are a Brooklyn-based marching band founded at the Jackie Robinson Center for Physical Culture. They wore signature blue uniforms and backed the group on a variety of hand-held instruments. For the P.S. 22 chorus from Staten Island, New York, this is the second time they have performed with Portugal. The Man, the band first visited their school last summer.

Portugal. The Man are currently out on their 2018 tour with more dates just added, catch them live this summer. Watch the band perform "Live In The Moment" on 'Colbert'

(Radio.com) Smashing Pumpkins will hit the road for a reunion tour that launches July 12 in Glendale, Arizona and frontman Billy Corgan took to social media to take about the reunion.

"This show and staging will be unlike any we've ever done, and will feature a set unlike any we've ever played," Corgan wrote on social media. "For if this is a chance at a new beginning, we plan on ushering it in with a real bang."

The band's reunion lineup features Corgan, guitarist James Iha, third guitarist Jeff Schroeder and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin (all but Schroeder were in the original band, which formed in Chicago in 1988). It is still unknown who will play bass on the group's upcoming tour.

Corgan also shared a setlist from a Pumpkins concert in Chicago in 1995. In the caption, he pointed out that the band tested unreleased material on that tour.

"It's important to mention we played all these songs (the Mellon Collie ones) before they were released, which would be unthinkable today given file sharing and so on," he wrote. See both posts

(hennemusic) The Doors are streaming a performance of their 1967 classic, "When The Music's Over", as the latest preview to the February 23 release of "Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival 1970."

The epic closing track from the group's second album, "Strange Days", was stretched even further in concert, says drummer John Densmore. "Playing that song was intense," Densmore tells Rolling Stone. "I had to take a deep breath before playing it, because it's not a little three-minute pop ditty. This was our second epic, after 'The End'. 'The End' was like a love song and then 'When the Music's Over was a statement. You know, 'We want the world and we want it now.'

"We developed it over time, vamping in the middle section, as Jim would throw in whatever poetry things he wanted. I'm real proud of it, because I had this impulse to stop the beat in the middle, and Ray kept the bass line going and Jim said, 'What have they done to the Earth? ... They stuck her with knives.' And I started stabbing the cymbals like knives. It was like freeform poetry in music.

"The Who did 'Tommy' that night at the Isle Of Wight," he adds. "They did an opera, we did a symphony."

Directed by Murray Lerner, "Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival 1970" captures the historic last concert ever filmed of The Doors, whose August 29 performance was featured alongside sets by The Who, ELP, Sly & The Family Stone, Ten Years After and Joni Mitchell, among others.

(hennemusic) The Who's Pete Townshend has announced that he will release an expanded 45th anniversary edition of his solo album debut, "Who Came First", on April 20.

The 1972 project combined tracks from Townshend's private pressings of his tributes to his spiritual guru Meher Baba - 1970's "Happy Birthday" and 1972's "I Am" - as well as demos from the unrealized concept album "Lifehouse", part of which became The Who's classic "Who's Next" album.

The 2-CD expanded version of "Who Came First" features the original album's nine tracks plus a second disc of eight previously unreleased tracks, new edits, alternative versions and live performances.

The eight-panel tall-format digipak includes new sleeve notes written by Pete himself, plus the original poster from the 1972 release and a 24-page booklet with rare images of Townshend at Eel Pie Sound, his home studio in Twickenham and performing at Meher Baba's shrine in India.

The cover photo of Pete standing on 500 eggs was originally shot back in 1972 by Graham Hughes (who also photographed the cover of The Who's "Quadrophenia" album) and has been restored and retouched by Graham for this new limited edition.

(hennemusic) Liam Gallagher was named Godlike Genius at the 2018 NME Awards during the magazine's February 14 event at London's O2 Academy Brixton, and video of his acceptance speech and full six-song performance is streaming online.

New Musical Express Editor-In-Chief Mike Williams presented Gallagher with the special award, saying his appointment to the Godlike Genius rankings was "extra special" compared to previous winners.

"This is a man who understands exactly what it means to be a rock'n'roll star," said Williams before welcoming the rocker to the stage. "Through his history, the tunes, the swagger, and the sense of humor, Liam is one of the most iconic rock stars of all time. He's a frontman who knows the job description - look cool, belt it out, be totally Godlike. No one does it quite like LG."

"I want to dedicate this to my mam and my army of songwriters, past and present. The parka monkeys," said Gallagher as he accepted the honor.

The 2018 event recognized UK and international artists, including Kasabian ("Best Live Artist"), Shirley Manson of Garbage ("NME Icon"), and Alt-J ("Best Bitish Band"), among others. Watch the video clips from the show and read more

(Radio.com) With Tuesday (Feb. 20) marking what would have been Nirvana legend Kurt Cobain's 51st birthday, daughter Francis Bean has shared a loving tribute to her late father.

"I hope they don't have the internet wherever you are," Francis Bean captioned next to lovely vintage photo of the Nirvana frontman playing with a baby Francis Bean in a wading pool. "I feel like that would be counterproductive. Regardless, Happy Birthday to an angel."

Her post followed one from her mother and Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, shared earlier in the day. See Francis Bean's post